ER-Based Test Finds High Prevalence of Hepatitis C

Updated: Aug 11th 2015

TUESDAY, Aug. 11, 2015 (HealthDay News) -- An emergency department-based screening and diagnostic testing program identified high prevalence of hepatitis C virus antibody positivity in adults, according to a study published online Aug. 4 in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.

Douglas A.E. White, M.D., from Highland Hospital in Oakland, Calif., and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study to evaluate the results of an emergency department-based hepatitis C virus testing program. Data were included for 26,639 unique adults aged 18 years or older who presented to the emergency department during the six-month study.